The present invention relates to a multiprocessing apparatus and particularly to a control system for generally controlling a plurality of processors connected to a carrier processor.
A semiconductor producing apparatus for flexibly executing a semiconductor wafer process by using a vacuum processing apparatus having a plurality of processors connected to a carrier processor has been disclosed in JP-A-63-129641.
When operation of the vacuum processing apparatus continues while processors that are unnecessary for the wafer process as well as unworkable processors remain connected to the carrier processor, a wafer process control sequence in which these processors are excluded can be set in this type of semiconductor producing apparatus.
In such a vacuum processing apparatus, on the other hand, it is necessary to facilitate alteration of the wafer process in the same apparatus configuration and increase or decrease the number of the processors to cope with a variety of wafer processes.
The conventional vacuum processing apparatus is, however, insufficient in consideration of matching between the carrier processor and processors connected thereto. There arises a problem therefore in that if there is any mismatching between the two, the vacuum processing apparatus as a whole is unable to facilitate operation and the time required for clearing up the cause of the failure is so long that the working ratio of the apparatus becomes low. That is, in the vacuum processing apparatus in which controllers for the carrier processor and process processors connected thereto perform controlling operations relationally, if the relational operations are mistaken with respect to an increase or decrease of the number of processors or in connection with maintenance, both a wafer carrying operation and a process set by an operator cannot be performed so that the operation of the apparatus is stopped.
Furthermore, wasteful electric power is consumed in the conventional vacuum processing apparatus because main circuit electric sources are turned on even for processors that are not used. Moreover, because such main circuit electric sources are turned on, maintenance of processors that are not used cannot be made when the vacuum processing apparatus is in operation, so that the working ratio of the apparatus cannot be improved.